KCSD & Me

• January 17: No school. Martin Luther King Jr. Day

• January 20: End of first semester
  

• January 21: No school. Grade prep day for teachers

Happy New Year and welcome to 2022! We wish you peace, love, health, and joy in the coming year.

We are nearing the second half of our school year, and we appreciate our families more than ever. Please continue to support your students and follow health guidelines so we can keep our schools open to in-person learning.

The winter sports season has kicked off, and KCSD students also are gearing up for academic and extracurricular competitions in robotics, music, DECA, FBLA, and FFA, to name a few. We look forward to seeing our students stretch their limits, meet challenges, and taste success.

In the months ahead, let's continue to work together to stay healthy, active, and involved in our schools and communities. #ProudtobeKCSD

IN THIS NEWSLETTER:

• Bus poster contest winners!
• Message from our health services team: Is your child too ill for school?
• In the news: Air Force Flight Academy scholar, Bonanza Santas, carols in the park, food bank penny drive, a mural for Chiloquin, teacher wins VFW award, pie in the face for the Gospel Mission.
  
• Inclement weather information: Make sure your contact information is up-to-date.

• School board: Monthly meeting is Jan. 20
  
  

Read on for details and photos.

A shout out to the more than 270 Klamath County School District students who submitted colorful and educational posters to the KCSD Ride Safe Campaign’s bus safety poster contest!

Before winter break, the district’s transportation department chose the top five posters in each grade category. From there, our bus drivers voted to determine the first-place posters. They called judging a difficult task because there were so many creative posters.

Thank you to everyone who participated! Follow the link below for our winners and their posters. Each winner had a choice between a family pass to Pelican Cinemas or the Bill Collier Ice Arena.

Welcome back and Happy New Year! The Health Services Team is ready to take on COVID-19 and other illnesses that may come our way.

We are in need of your help to mitigate the virus and decrease illness spread in school. You can do this by following the illness guidelines HERE. (Link is also below). En español aquí.

Our goal is to keep our students in school and learning. If you have any questions, please reach out to your district nurse by contacting your school. Thank you for all that you do to keep our kids in school.

Laura Limb, RN, MSN-HCA, MBA

KCSD Lead Nurse

Andrew Edwards, a senior at Henley High School, has received a scholarship to the Air Force Junior ROTC Flight Academy Program.

The scholarship, valued at more than $22,000, covers transportation, room and board, academics, and flight hours required to potentially earn a private pilot certificate. Through the program, Edwards will attend an accredited aviation university in the summer of 2022.

He is one of 200 Air Force Junior ROTC cadets around the world to receive the scholarship from Headquarters Air Force Junior ROTC, Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Ala. More than 1,300 cadets applied.

The Air Force Junior ROTC Flight Academy Scholarship Program is an Air Force-level initiative in collaboration with the commercial aviation industry to address the national civilian and military pilot shortage, according to a press release from the Air Force Junior ROTC.

Forty Bonanza area families received gifts and holiday food boxes last month thanks to the efforts of Bonanza Junior/Senior High School and community partners, Bonanza Cares and Living Springs Fellowship Church. Read more

A schoolwide donation drive and competition organized by Henley Elementary sixth-grader Josie Ginestar raised $2036.46 for the Klamath Lake Counties Food Bank last month. Josie organized the grade-level Penny War with the help of her mother, Kara Ginestar, who is an assistant cook at Henley Elementary.

Three groups competed against each other – K-2, 3-4 and 5-6. Pennies and dollars were positive points and silver counted as negative points. The 3-4 group (third- and fourth-graders) won the "war."

Malin Elementary School brought their holiday program to the community this year. The entire student body -- more than 120 strong -- performed carols outside Dec. 8 at the annual tree lighting celebration at Malin Park. The students sang three songs -- Rudolph, Feliz Navidad, and I Want to Wish You a Merry Christmas. Shortly after, the switch was flipped, lighting up the wonderland that is Malin Park in December. The siren from a fire truck announced the arrival of Santa. Malin Principal Margaret McCadden said she hopes this will become a new tradition for the school.

When local artist Leonard Wilder asked Chiloquin Junior/Senior High School seventh- and eighth-graders to brainstorm about the future of their city, many envisioned a thriving community where people had jobs and homes and felt pride in where they lived. Wilder, a 1965 graduate of Chiloquin, visited the school’s shop and art classes in December to get ideas for the 50-by-10-foot mural he will create as part of the Chiloquin Green Schoolyard Project. The mural will represent the past, present, and future. Art Ochoa, a 1970 graduate of Chiloquin and schoolyard project coordinator, joined him. They asked students to focus on the future. “We’re trying to get feedback from our seventh- and eighth-graders since they were involved in the original schoolyard idea,” Ochoa said. “We want them to continue to be invested.” Read more

Bonanza Junior/Senior High School math teacher Mallory Drake was named the local Veteran of Foreign Wars Post 1383’s Citizenship Education Teacher of the Year last month during a ceremony in front of the student body. Read more

Henley Middle School students in early December anted up more than $429 for the Klamath Falls Gospel Mission during a coin drive to help those in need. The goal of the drive, organized by the school’s leadership class and advisor Lizzie Ovgard, was to raise more than $200. The prize: Throwing pies in the faces of their leaders – Principal Kristy Creed and Vice Principal Mike Kappas. As a bonus, teacher Brett Morris, who brought in the most money, agreed to get a pie in face as well. The pies were delivered during an all-school assembly.

Following is KCSD's plan to let you know if there are delays or cancellations due to inclement weather or other emergencies:

• Our first line of communication will be through the One Call Now system. Please make sure that the schools your students attend have your current contact information in the system.
  
• If we find it necessary to close school in the morning, we will notify parents via One Call Now. Announcements also will be made over local radio and television stations after 6 a.m. All announcements and updates will be posted to our district website -- www.kcsd.k12.or.us -- as well as our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages.
  
• During an inclement weather event, a parent may determine they cannot safely transport their child to school because of environmental factors in their area. If your child will not be attending, please call the school and let them know.
  
• If it is necessary to dismiss school early due to bad weather or other emergencies, we will notify parents via One Call Now, and announcements will posted on our district website, and Facebook and Twitter pages as soon as a decision is made.

January's KCSD Board of Directors meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 20 at the District Office, 2845 Greensprings Drive. When the agenda is available, it will be posted here: KCSD School Board Agenda and Materials.

Check out our job openings: KCSD Employment Opportunities

In our KCSD & Me district newsletters, we will provide updates as well as share news from across our district. If you need information between newsletters, go to our webpage at www.kcsd.k12.or.us and follow us on social media. Keep track of KCSD & Me newsletters at: https://www.kcsd.k12.or.us/district/kcsd--me-newsletters.cfm

Inspiring today's students to meet tomorrow's challenges!

Read our Strategic Plan

Email: kcsd_communications@kcsd.k12.or.us
Website: www.kcsd.k12.or.us
Location: 2845 Greensprings Drive, Klamath Falls, OR, USA
Phone: 541-883-5000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KlamathCountySchoolDistrict/
Twitter: @KlamathCountySD